'Sheath blight' looms over Punjab rice crop

Rice crop in several parts of Punjab is staring at an attack from a fungal disease -- sheath blight -- with experts advising growers to take appropriate steps to prevent damage.
The current weather conditions are quite conducive to the disease to spread, experts have warned.
"The reports regarding the incidence of sheath blight disease on rice have been received from various parts of Punjab," said P S Sekhon, Head, Department of Plant Pathology, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), today.
Referring to its initial symptoms, he said affected plants exhibit oval to irregular grayish green lesions with purple margins on the lower leaf sheath just above the water level.

Because of this, the infected leaves could die rapidly, thus affecting crop yield. Under favourable weather conditions, the lesions expand upwards, affecting the entire plant and yield.
The experts have cautioned farmers about the appearance of this disease in basmati rice varieties as well.
Farmers have been advised to spray their crops with recommended fungicides to curb the spread of this disease.
Punjab this season has seen paddy acreage of about 28 lakh hectares.